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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-31-2011 Council Minutes Special MeetingU MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL -Monday, January 31, 2011 • 8:00 o'clock a.m. ROLL CALL The Orono City Council met on the above - mentioned date with the following members present: Mayor Lili Tod McMillan, Council Members Cynthia Bremer, Doug Franchot, and Aaron Printup. Representing Staff were City Administrator Jessica Loftus, Finance Director Ron Olson, City Engineer Tom Kellogg and Recorder /City Clerk Lin Vee. Mayor McMillan called the meeting to order at 8:02 a.m., followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. 1. OLD CRYSTAL BAY ROAD RECONSTRUCTION McMillan stated the purpose of the special meeting is to get an understanding and agreement on the project so that Bonestroo can submit the design to MnDOT for their review and approval. She proposed Council consideration and discussion in three segments to include roundabout design, median treatment between curbs, and any kind of landscaping outside the curbs. Kellogg explained the background and timeline of the project to -date. Meetings have been held with members of the school district and school board since last July. The school recently hired a transportation consultant to study traffic. Based on his recommendations, traffic movements to the middle school have changed from one access to two, and relocation of the roundabout to the north where busses enter and exit. This created a longer distance to access the elementary or middle school and a smaller third • roundabout was proposed to shorten the distance and travel time between the north and south roundabouts. Franchot asked about safety access issues with the middle roundabout. Kellogg stated the Fire Chief commented that they wanted to access the parking lot on the west side which moved middle roundabout north to the intersection to allow access to the parking lot. McMillan asked if Council was comfortable with the third roundabout and proposed roundabout design. Bremer stated she had started with a preference for no roundabouts, but information has shown that it makes sense to have three. While she would have preferred two, she believes three roundabouts is a better design. McMillan stated initial discussions included a third roundabout as an option and asked if Council was satisfied to include the cost for a third roundabout. Council agreed the cost was justifiable to make the road and design most functional. McMillan moved forward with discussion of the median treatments and landscaping between the curbs. Kellogg stated that John Slack, landscape architect at Bonestroo, attended the last Council meeting and gave a presentation of what a 10' wide median with landscaping might look like as recommended at the October 25°i meeting. Following discussion at the January 20 meeting, he has also prepared a 4' • concrete median design. Page 1 of 12 MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock a.m. Slack stated he has developed a second median concept, narrowing the median to 4' and defining potential enhancements and costs. The primary objective for median improvements is to look at safety including preventing mid -block pedestrian crossings and traffic calming. They proposed the use of native landscaping to create a low maintenance median treatment utilizing native plant materials and no irrigation. Slack presented images comparing a 10' landscaped median with a 4' concrete median. He noted that the 4' median images didn't include existing trees or landscape enhancements along the boulevard. The 4' median image between the high school and middle school represents some sort of architectural fence element, possibly a short metal wire railing option or it could be a more decorative, larger and taller railing which would be presented later. McMillan noted that a line of trees exist from city hall to the middle roundabout on the west side. Slack stated the 10' landscape median included boulevard trees on both sides of the road, plant materials of varying sizes to enhance crossing areas, and a center median with an earthen form and overstory street trees. The 4' median has no boulevard trees and but includes screening in the roundabout to help block the driver's view so the driver focuses to the right rather than looking through the roundabout. Bonestroo also uses architectural elements such as wall treatments and landforms for screening in roundabouts. r� LJ Several images of median work were discussed. The first roundabout with a 10' wide median uses street trees to define the edge. Streetscapes utilize landscaping, ground level plantings and overstory trees as • additional methods to control traffic. Vertical elements such as tree trunks are used to break up views and psychologically slow drivers for traffic calming effects. A narrower median moving away from the roundabout was shown and although the existing trees were not included, there are several groupings of trees that will remain. Franchot asked Slack if Bonestroo uses landscape elements as part of the traffic management plan because it is considered a best practice or if Bonestroo has just found it to be effective. Slack confirmed it is a best practice. He noted they like to cluster plant materials to create visual gaps and makes it less noticeable when a tree dies. Slack stated the 10' wide median uses a combination of clusters of trees, ground level plants and an architectural railing element. They would use the best device to limit crossing in unacceptable areas, and in most cases that would be the railing. McMillan asked how visitors will identify where schools are once the landscape matures. Slack responded that one of the goals is to create traffic control with landscaping, and once the tree canopy grows, it calms and slows traffic. The clusters of trees and ground level plantings will be placed to maximize important views of the school buildings and/or main entrances. If the landscaped median is chosen as a final plan, they would revisit the landscape design. He added that signage would also be very important. Franchot noted he recently found it difficult to locate the superintendent's office as the area is not • currently well signed. Page 2 of 12 • MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL, Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock a.m. McMillan stated the Carlson Towers roadway is a good example of a landscaped median. As the landscaping has matured, "The Gates" complex has become less visible. Kellogg noted that signage is part of the project. Slack continued comparing 10' and 4' medians. He noted ground level plantings would not be above the eye level of vehicles. The landscaped median treatment would alternate from plantings to railing. The 4' median has several treatments and cost estimates. Options include colored concrete or pavers. Colored concrete potentially has lower short-term but greater long -term maintenance costs. Franchot asked why no barrier fencing was included in the area near the elementary school. Slack responded that the architectural fencing is fairly expensive. The most recent cost estimate was from $55 -65 per lineal foot and long stretches of fence would be very costly. Kellogg added that the school has indicated the most problematic area is between the middle school and high school, but fencing could also be added in the elementary school area. Franchot stated cost has been a constant factor and the assumption has been that the narrower median would be cheaper. An important point to note is that the expense of a narrower median has become high enough that a significant length has no barrier as opposed to the landscaped model where there are • plantings the entire length of the median. Slack continued with images closer to the roundabout between the high school and middle school where there would be a long length of railing to provide a safety component and prevent mid -block crossings. McMillan asked about the height of the railings. Slack responded the railing is shown at just over 3 feet. Another railing treatment at 40-42" at a mid - block crossing was also shown. Slack reviewed images of various treatments that Bonestroo has worked on in other cities. Slack stated two revised cost estimates have been provided. The first cost estimate was originally prepared as part of the landscape. option for the previous meeting but has been refined for the cost of the cable railing. Cost estimates will continue to be refined as the design moves forward. The new cost estimate for the 4' wide median includes three different types of median paving treatments. The colored concrete estimate for 12,000 s.f. is about $61,000. Brick or stone would cost more. McMillan asked for further description of materials used for bricks or pavers. Slack stated the estimates are standard costs and might be a standard 2 x 4' brick or larger square paver. Costs would be revised depending on final selection. Stone could potentially be something like a flat irregular limestone which is generally a nicer material but more labor intensive to install. • Bremer asked about maintenance of various materials. Slack responded that concrete is generally lower maintenance up front but long -term there are issues with cracking and larger repair areas; brick and stone have weed control issues. Page 3 of 12 MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock a.m. Bremer noted they are not comparing apples -to- apples because the 4' concrete median doesn't include boulevard street trees, which is a major cost of the landscaped median. Franchot added by his calculation the landscaped median is 56% of the cost of the 4' hardcover. Slack agreed, noting in the landscaped median concept there were 32 median trees and 123 boulevard trees. The trees have been removed from the images since part of the discussion from the last meeting included removal of boulevard trees, which also lead to some of the starkness of the images. Slack stated for the 4' median concept there are 820 lineal feet of railing between the middle and high schools. Roundabout treatments stayed the same in both cost estimates but can be refined in the future. The total for the 4' median is $156,000, which only includes the concrete median pavement and cable railing. The original landscaped median cost estimate is about $170,000, less $61,500 for removal of the boulevard street trees, for a:total of $108,000. is Slack discussed the additional document that represents a potential long -term maintenance plan. With approximately 2,000 lineal feet of landscaped areas, minus small median areas around the roundabouts, the estimate is approximately $6 per lineal feet. Most other streetscapes he has worked on have higher maintenance costs because they are more labor intensive. Also included is a square foot cost of $.90 for the roundabout areas for a total annual maintenance cost of approximately $22,000 for the landscaped • median. Since the city has indicated they do not want to use irrigation, an option would be to establish a maintenance plan agreement with the landscape contractor for the first two or three years that could include plant maintenance, replanting trees that die, pruning, trimming, and watering. After the contract expires, the city would take over maintenance of the landscaping. Tree establishment is key to the maintenance plan. The $22,000 estimate would begin after the first three years. Slack generally does a yearly review of maintenance needs. Slack continued with the second maintenance estimate for the concrete median. This plan wouldn't need an agreement with a landscape contractor except for the roundabout area for two years. The majority of the costs are related to cleaning and redoing concrete and cleaning and repainting of the railing. The overall length and roundabout area is the same for both estimates. The estimated cost is $3.20 per lineal foot but would probably be between $2.80 and $3.00. The total estimate for the concrete median maintenance is between $15,000 and $16,500, probably beginning after the second year. McMillan asked if the city is taking a risk by not including irrigation in landscape project. Slack felt confident that the city could move forward without irrigation, but it helps to alleviate potential issues. It is most beneficial during the initial growth and establishment period. In many of their projects, irrigation is used in the first three years and then turned off. For this project, they have focused on plant materials that can survive in urban conditions and heavy salt use. Kellogg asked if it is more cost effective to install irrigation knowing it will only be used for the first • three years as opposed to including a three -year contract with landscape contractor. Page 4 of 12 U MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock adn. Slack responded he was unsure but it probably balances out over time. Installing the irrigation system will have a higher cost but the maintenance plan agreement wouldn't be needed. The hardest part is monitoring the landscape contractor to be sure the work is being done. Bremer stated the good thing with irrigation would be that the city controls it and can zone for irrigation. Slack noted that once trees are established, they can typically survive on the annual rainfall. At that point, trees need air in the soil so it's important not to compact soil. McMillan asked for comments and thoughts from the Council. Franchot asked for comments from the school and police chief regarding the landscaped median vs. hardscaped fence median. Bremer commented if they decide that the two options are a fenced environment vs. partial trees /partial fence that the safety issues are the same. She noted a letter from the Long Lake Mayor and Fire Chief indicates they would like nothing in medians to allow for the ability to cross at any point. Since there are three roundabouts, there are good access points. At the time the letter was written, they had not seen the plans that include some type of barrier. John Ostlund, Building and Grounds Coordinator for Orono Schools, introduced other school • representatives including Superintendent Karen Orcutt, School Board Members Martha Van de Ven, Mike Bash, Bob Tunheim, and additional staff Tom Stringer, Justin McCoy and Gary Kubat. Ostlund stated planning has made the process most successful. The school was invited very early in the process and has helped the project evolve. They are pleased with the location of the three roundabouts and both median designs meet their safety concerns. He noted a good number of trees exist, but he believes at least some of them will be uprooted during the construction process and will need replacement. He added that many are ash trees with the challenge of ash tree disease. He asked that the need for trees not be minimized. In regard to irrigation and watering, he commented that it is hard to add and find funding at a later time and should be considered early in the process. The school is willing to provide in -kind support services, specifically mowing and mulching. The superintendent has already started working on signage and communication plans, but will need the city's help with signage. Mike Bash stated the superintendent and other school representatives have had very positive experiences in working with city staff on this project. He commented that from the long -term perspective, he would prefer the wider landscaped median. It gives much greater flexibility to work with landscaping and add trees in the future. Franchot asked Chief Farniok for his opinion regarding landscaped vs. concrete median. Farniok responded that either design works. He noted the crosswalk north of the second smaller roundabout was of some concern with only a 4' buffer next to the stacking lane and if it would be wide enough for students and staff waiting for the traffic between lanes. Printup asked about the commitment from the schools. Bash had mentioned going with a wider median • and looking down the line into plantings, and doing what the.city is good at which is sweeping the streets. Printup stated he wanted more of a commitment from the school in this project. Page 5 of 12 MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock a.m. Ostlund responded that he was specifically referring to mowing in the 10' median. The school would mow weekly or as needed as they do throughout the school district; trees in that area would have mulch around them and the school has a regular mulch replacement plan. Mulch also helps with watering efficiency and the school could add mulch replacement to their plan. Printup asked if Ostlund was including both the median and roundabout area. Ostlund responded that the school would do the work anywhere in the middle of roadway. Printup asked if the work includes shoveling crosswalks in the winter. Ostlund responded that they would include shoveling the crosswalks because the crosswalks connect to the school sidewalks. Ralph Kempf commented that the school had mentioned pruning and some maintenance of low growing plants and asked if the school would include that type of work. Ostlund responded that the school would include pruning of trees in the annual maintenance. Franchot confirmed the school was stating that they would add maintenance of the median to their landscape maintenance plan, unless there are annuals. 0 Ostlund stated the school doesn't work with annuals unless there is a school committee in charge of the • annuals. McMillan asked if the school has an irrigation system throughout the school property that could be tapped into. She added that the city doesn't have irrigation and if the city decided to go down the path of irrigation, they would want to connect to the school's system. Fall pipe maintenance is also required. Ostlund confirmed they do have an irrigation system and could possibly connect in the median to the school's system. Fall blow -down of pipes would be a minimal expense and they already have separate meters on the irrigation system to get a break on water charges from the city. Irrigation is coming out of the high school in two locations and one at the middle school. DeBaere noted the city has a small area of irrigation in front of city hall, but it would take a fair amount of work to tie into another system. He also commented there would be concrete maintenance, such as washing, and indicated the city would work with the school where necessary. Ostlund stated there would be weeds amongst concrete cracks and they would help with control since they also do maintenance on sidewalks, but would not do any repainting. Bremer stated she was more sure of her previous decision and strongly supports the wider median concept, adding that further study would need to take place to determine the correct number and dollar amount to be designated for median and boulevard trees and shrubs. At this point, the exact details aren't necessary as long as Kellogg has enough information to handle the landscaping in the budget that will be sent out for bids. She is opposed to colored concrete because it cracks and after 3 or 4 years it no longer • looks attractive, and would prefer brick or stone. Pavers require a lot of maintenance and she is against using chemicals for weed control. Adding an underlayment for weed control only increases hardcover Page 6 of 12 • MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock a.m. which is against the Orono philosophy. She reiterated her support of the wider median to include trees, grasses and plantings to add a natural look. Franchot agreed with comments made by Bremer and strongly supports the landscaped median. He added that he has never seen a concrete median that doesn't have weeds and could be an eyesore. Regarding site lines, he drives Carlson Parkway every day and doesn't see any site line issues. He stated this is Orono and the city regularly gets dinged when it doesn't work to preserve the rural oasis and natural spaces. It is important that the school have a warm welcoming entrance. Since costs have come in so much cheaper, the only reasonable objection, which was the substantial cost difference, has gone away. He strongly supports the landscaped median essentially as it has been presented, with possible adjustments to trees and plantings as the project moves forward. He is not in favor installing a wide median and delaying the plantings. There will be other projects and work to do in the future, and given that the landscaped median has come in lower in cost than concrete, the landscaping should be done as part of the project. Relative to boulevard trees, fewer tees could be added, but any trees lost in construction should be replaced and the city should also be mindful of the ash borer. Trees would be a good place to cut costs if necessary as each tree is $500. Franchot added his appreciation to the school board for their partnership in the project. One of the concerns has been additional maintenance for the city's Public Works Department. With the planning for low maintenance and help from the school, the maintenance issue is well under control, if not gone. Printup stated after talking with parents around town and hearing their concerns with the project, it • becomes a need vs. want and they don't entirely see the need for such landscaping, but they do see a need for traffic control. The fundamental governmental service from the city is to build the road. The road will be constructed as part of the project, but beautification and landscaping comes down to a want. He stated he could go along with an 8' or 10' median with very limited landscaping, because he doesn't want it to be a beautification project. If the school wants to move forward with landscaping, that would be great, and there are a lot of volunteers in the area that could volunteer to donate a tree, shrub or plantings from their own yards. He would rely a lot on volunteerism for landscaping, not coming out of the city budget. As for site lines for parents dropping children off and watching as they enter school, there shouldn't be any obstructions and that goes along with leaving the median open. Franchot responded to comments regarding site lines and didn't think there would be an issue with parents feeling comfortable with their children entering the school safely because the drop -off locations are off the road in parking lots. Planning has been-done to allow for staging and drop -off areas for students. Kellogg agreed indicating that many of the design features focus on drop -offs at the elementary and middle schools and the pedestrian crossings, especially between the middle school and high school. Comments from the elementary and middle schools have been incorporated into the designs. Parents dropping off students, especially elementary age, want to watch their child walk into the front door. Franchot responded to the wants vs. needs issue and felt that argument demands the landscaped median because it is so much cheaper, and we have a responsibility to our citizens to make it look finished and good. He does not think the proposed landscaping is excessive. The landscaping helps as a pedestrian barrier and requires much less of the expensive fencing. While he appreciates Printup's optimism as to • the generosity of volunteers, he doesn't think they will step up. This is the time to do the landscaping and move on with other projects. We could also get donated plants that won't survive. He thought Printup's position points to approving the whole plan as recommended. Page 7 of 12 MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock a.m. • Printup responded he is definitely not approving the whole plan as recommended. He reiterated that he could agree with the 10' median with a blank slate. In time, things can be added through volunteerism which has worked well in Wayzata. As far as dropping students off and the finished look, he noted he sees things differently and that we owe it to our citizens to watch how we spend money. When students are dropped off, parents aren't looking at the nice scenery. He stated we should create the road, and vegetation and beautification can come with time. McMillan stated she has always had issues with maintenance, especially long -term maintenance depending on who takes on responsibility. She noted that 70% of Orono taxpayers are not in the Orono school district and the city should be cognizant of who wants a beautiful road for their school. It is a long median, over a quarter of a mile, which is necessary for functional safety to stop left -hand terms. Both the initial costs and long -term ongoing costs of a median have been discussed. If the school is comfortable with irrigating and maintaining the landscaped median, she could approve it, but doesn't want the city to take on maintenance costs. She wanted a commitment from the school for future maintenance. The 4' median gives an opportunity for a simpler maintenance plan that serves the functionality and safety of the road, which is the city's obligation. The project also solves some problems with bussing and drop - off/pick -up locations. She cautioned against diminishing the large area for landscaping and the required ongoing maintenance, and did not want a complicated maintenance agreement. She would like the school to take care of landscape maintenance because they have their own grounds crew while the city contracts out for mowing services. The school could also swap out shrubs or use school colors to have school ownership of the median. If the school decides they don't want the expense of landscaping maintenance, the city has the 4' median option. • Because of the time constraint, McMillan stated the Council needs to make a decision as soon as possible. Superintendent Orcutt stated she was comfortable with what has been said, but requested 5 minutes for discussion with the school board members who were present at the meeting. Ralph Kempf, 3675 Togo Road, commented that this has been a wonderful process. He suggested a 10' median, sloped up with black soil, renamed Otten Parkway and then just stand back. While this adds a bit of humor, he stated it started him thinking in terms of Navarre and if you get key people involved, amazing things can happen. John Thiesse, Planning Commission representative, asked if landscaping is part of beautification or a traffic calming plan and stopping people from crossing the road. He stated he believed the landscaping is part of the plan and the design should be left to the professionals. The plan was developed for what is necessary and the city is removing landscaping as beautification. Slack stated the intent of the landscaping is to be traffic calming and safety. Landscaping provides less of a physical barrier for crossing. Franchot asked if the 4' median would require an additional 400+ feet of fencing to meet the safety needs. Slack responded that it may not be necessary to add that much fencing but it allows crossing anywhere there isn't a fencing barrier. A member of the public asked if the school took on the responsibility of the maintenance, including the • first 3 years, if the costs for maintenance wouldn't be reduced by up to $22,000 for each of the first 3 years since the maintenance costs for the first 3 years would be included in the contract to be let. Page 8 of 12 • MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock a.m. Slack responded that is a good point and the whole concept of the school doing maintenance is great. Most of the expense is probably in mowing. This would be a wonderful opportunity to work with the school to design a landscape median that would meet both school and city needs that doesn't happen very often. Ostlund asked about the tree budget and if it could be included as contingency with the number and placement of trees to determined and reduced as needed. Slack stated there has been discussion about reducing the overall number of trees and what has been presented is a cursory concept of what can be done. McMillan stated it is important today to determine whether there will be a 4' or 10' feet median and who will do the maintenance. Plantings and trees can be determined later, and volunteer opportunities can still be considered. The entity that does the maintenance should have input into the type of plantings to be included in the landscape plan. Kellogg added that in order for the project to be constructed this year they need a decision on the median width today, but they don't need a decision on the number of trees, etc. Orcutt stated the school board that is present will support maintenance of the natural parts of the median, • but not hard surfaces like the fence. She noted they have not had any problems with cooperation on the paths in the area. McMillan stated there will be some fine tuning on the number of plantings and fencing placement and the school should be involved in these decisions. Kellogg noted that when Slack put the cost estimates together, he was probably representing worst case scenarios and they expect the costs to be reduced by eliminating some trees or shortening fencing to the extent they can. McMillan asked if the Council needs to determine the costs of landscaping in the median today. Kellogg responded that if the direction is to build the wider median and minimally or cost effectively landscape it, that will be sufficient for today. They would work with the school and brings costs back to Council at a later date. McMillan also asked about installation of the irrigation system and wanted to clarify that she thought the school should pay for the cost of installing the irrigation system. Bremer stated Council should have further information on the cost before deciding if there should be irrigation and requiring the school to be responsible for the cost. The school would also want to know the cost before committing to installation of an irrigation system. Kellogg stated discussions have included irrigation and no irrigation. Slack has indicated it would be • helpful during establishment, but if the school takes on maintenance, maybe there isn't a need for irrigation. McMillan noted Council hasn't determined the cost of irrigation and who pays for it. Page 9 of 12 MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock a.m. Kellogg stated irrigation information and cost estimates can be brought back to a future meeting. The width of the median is the important decision for this meeting. Bremer added that if irrigation is cost prohibitive, irrigation would be eliminated. Oslund stated the school will continue to do maintenance but they were not looking at doing the initial capital installation of an irrigation system. He added that there will be a water main in the street for a water source in the area. At that point it would be determining if the controls were in the median or inside one of the buildings and they would work with the city. McMillan stated she is most concerned about maintenance of an irrigation system and doesn't want the Public Works Department to be responsible for maintaining an irrigation system. She would like to keep it as one entity's job to track maintenance. I Ostlund indicated he was most comfortable with discussions about maintenance, which would include raising and replacing heads as needed. Franchot asked Olson if the city doesn't do the landscape with the initial project, where the money would come from in the future. • Olson replied the money could come from the tax levy or construction funds. At that point, landscaping • would be weighed against other projects which may have higher priorities. Franchot expressed his concern that if the city goes down the path of not including landscaping now, it will cost considerably more because more steel fencing will be required to get to a modicum of safety. Bremer stated that she believes it will be a quick process and before things are completed, Council will know what the landscaping will be, but they don't have details at this time. As part of the process, the school may determine less landscaping is needed, which would be Printup's preference. McMillan noted that half of the school year the median is covered with snow and the city needs to be cognizant of spending too much money on landscaping. This is an opportunity for the city to put in the basics and the school will have the prerogative to add landscaping as they wish. The city's responsibility is to provide a safe functional road. The city is giving the school ownership of the landscaping. Long- term maintenance costs would come out of taxpayer money and shifting maintenance to the school, that gets most benefit from the landscaping, is the proper fiscal thing to do. Bremer moved to approve the wider landscaped median option, to establish some type of agreement with the school based on their representation that they will maintain the landscape features but will not maintain the railing and hardscape features, and that the school will maintain an irrigation system if further study determines that an irrigation system is beneficial for both sides to move forward with installation of an irrigation system. Franchot seconded the motion. McMillan recommended adding approval of three roundabouts. • Page 10 of 12 • MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock a.m. Bremer amended the motion to include approval of three roundabouts according to the plan for the road design. McMillan asked for clarification on the capital costs of the irrigation system. Bremer stated since the cost for the irrigation installation has not been determined that Council will have to be comfortable with leaving that open until bids are received. Until bids are received, it's difficult to determine the level of support for including irrigation. She added it may be unrealistic to do the type of landscaping they are considering without irrigation, but the costs need to be determined before making a final decision as the irrigation costs may be prohibitive. McMillan asked for clarification of the treatment outside the curb. She stated she is in favor of replacing any trees destroyed as part of construction, but the city shouldn't pay for additional trees outside of the curb. The city's job is to provide a safe functional road and landscaping outside the curb should not be included in the project. Franchot asked if landscaping outside the curb should be a topic for future discussion. McMillan responded that she would like to discuss it further so the school would have a concise understanding of landscaping outside the curb. Bremer included in the motion replacement of damaged trees as a result of construction, but they should Is leave discussion about trees outside curb open for further discussion. Depending on safety issues, there may be a need to include a particular type of landscaping to help funnel students to a specific area. She expressed concern with having too many trees and blocking building views, noting that existing trees have been planted in certain locations for a reason. Boulevard trees are something to be decided at a later date and should be coordinated with median treatment. Kellogg stated generally a certain number of replacement trees are included with the project, but the city would only pay for those trees that are used. The engineers will have a better idea of impacts on the existing trees once the design is finalized. Franchot seconded the amendment to guarantee replacement of trees destroyed but would leave trees outside the curb open for future discussion. The amended motion reads Bremer moved, Franchot seconded, to approve the wider landscaped median option; to establish an agreement with the school based on their representation that they will maintain the landscape features but will not maintain the railing and hardscape features, and the school will maintain an irrigation system if further study determines that it is beneficial for both sides to move forward with installation of an irrigation system; to approve the road design including three roundabouts according to the plan; to guarantee replacement of boulevard trees destroyed during project construction; and to leave the decision regarding trees outside the curb open for future discussion. VOTE: Ayes 4, Nays 0. ADJOURNMENT • Bremer moved, Printup seconded, to adjourn the Orono City Council meeting at 9:58 a.m. VOTE: Ayes 4, Nays 0. Page 11 of 12 MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL ORONO CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 31, 2011 8:00 o'clock a.m. ATTEST: 2- Lin a S. Vee, City Clerk Lili Tod McMillan, Mayor Page 12 of 12 • • c: